|
Introduction
Second only to lighting in importance to
the maintenance of a modern reef aquarium is flow. For the
majority of hobbyists, flow will be produced through the use
of powerheads. Powerheads are made by many manufacturers and
vary greatly in quality and design. For the purposes of this
article, powerheads are classified as those pumps designed
for in-tank use to produce current. The purpose of this review
is to highlight the features of all brands/models of powerheads
known at the time of this writing, and to explain some of
the basic elements of powerhead design. After reading this
article, the aquarist should be able to make an informed purchase
when planning his/her next aquarium. Some powerheads featured
will only be available in certain countries or voltages.
Some History
The powerhead was invented by Norbert Tunze
in 1960 in Munich, Germany. While working as a radio and television
technician, he was brought an Eheim pump for repair. At the
time, Eheim was a well-known toy manufacturer and offered
a centrifugal pump for use in powering fountains on model
railroad sets. Tunze noted the pump added to the liveliness
in his aquarium when he tested the repaired pump. At that
time all pumps had a bottom intake and a top outlet; he decided
that it should be possible to produce a pump specifically
for the purpose of flow in the aquarium and this would necessitate
a forward flow. Mr. Tunze patented the forward direction of
flow which made his invention possible- the Tunze Turbelle
400. The first powerhead was called the Turbelle, from the
combined German words "Turbine" and "Libelle"-
German for dragonfly. The first powerhead, as we now generally
call this group of pumps, used eight watts to pump 430l/h
with a top-mounted air-cooled motor. Within the past 40 years
tremendous advances have been made, including most recently
the broad flow powerheads.
Fundamentals of Powerhead Design
Powerheads can be broken down into two
formats: submersible and non-submersible. Submersible powerheads
are simpler to make, cheaper and generally are the most frequently
encountered. Non-submersible powerheads are sometimes chosen
by the hobbyist because they add less bulk to the aquarium
and produce very little heat. Submersible powerheads exist
in two basic forms: synchronous and electronic. Non-submersible
powerheads also exist in two basic forms: synchronous and
asynchronous. In both cases synchronous means they run synchronously
to mains frequency. A U.S. model powerhead would produce a
rotation of 3600 rpm and a European model would produce a
rotation of 3000 rpm. This is because the power is energizing
an electromagnetic coil which is changing polarity at 60Hz
or 50Hz which can also be said as 60 cycles per second or
50 cycles per second. This field in turn causes a permanent
magnet to rotate and spin an impeller or propeller. Such pumps
cannot be controlled in any way. It is not only impractical
to control the Hz, but attempting to do so may destroy the
motor coil, which was purposefully built to run on the given
Hz pattern. For the non-submersible asynchronous powerhead
a special motor construction is used that allows speed control
as the pump is running asynchronously with the mains voltage.
Usually, the rotor consists of numerous magnetized plates
embedded in a material and a coil which is energized; the
strength of the energized magnet controls the speed at which
the rotor turns. The submersible electronic powerhead is controlled
by a sophisticated computer system that controls the motor
coil assembly and generates a rotation pattern also independent
of mains frequency. To summarize:
| |
Controllable:
|
Non-Controllable:
|
| Submersible: |
Electronic
|
Synchronous
|
| Non-Submersible: |
Asynchronous
|
Synchronous
|
Powerhead Features
In this overview powerheads will be classified
as outlined above. Reviews under each category will be done
in alphabetical order by manufacturer. All data will be metric,
as this is the standard of the world at large and the scientific
community. For some powerheads data may be incomplete and
this will be noted with NA (Not Available). For each powerhead
the following categories will be considered: model, maximum
flow, maximum head, wattage, efficiency (defined as (max flow
in l/h * maximum head in m)/ power consumption in watts) -
the higher the number the greater the efficiency. High efficiency
can generally be interpreted to mean less heat production
in the case of submersible powerheads. These efficiency numbers
have no real intrinsic meaning or value - they are simply
a way to do a relative comparison of two or more pumps. The
ideal powerhead would have a high flow, a modest head pressure,
low wattage and all numbers together should provide an efficiency
rating of at least 150 if not 200. For the purposes of circulation
in reef aquaria, flow is important. Head pressure generally
equates to shearing force. It is the shearing force or collision
of still water along with a high pressure jet of water that
may destroy live plankton. It can also be assumed that if
two pumps of the same flow are compared and one uses a greater
number of watts of power, the higher wattage unit will produce
more heat insofar as the extra waste energy is converted to
heat. Safety marks consist of safety approval certifications
by various agencies. Safety marks generally mean a product
will be of higher quality. Some companies may choose to forego
safety marks because it compromises a product feature to comply
with one part of the code or another, or adds to the expense
of the product. Regardless of marks, an aquarium-use powerhead
should be epoxy sealed, constructed with a suitable cord and
offer thermostatic or impedance protection.
Abbreviations:
|
CE
= Conformity Europe
|
|
UL
= Underwriters Laboratory
|
|
ETL
= Electronics Testing Laboratory
|
|
CSA
= Canadian Safety Administration
|
|
CUL
= Canadian Underwriters Laboratory
|
|
VDE
= Verband Deutscher Elektrotechniker
|
Numerous other safety marks exist for almost
every country; many of these pumps conform to additional standards
as well, which are not listed. MSRP is the manufacturer's
suggested retail price; this price is only for getting a feeling
of pricing differences between products. Where an MSRP was
not provided, a good faith estimate based on retail, wholesale
and mail-order pricing is provided. For European pumps, price
in Euros was converted to dollars at the rate of 1 Euro to
$1.17.
Synchronous Submersible Pumps:
AquaBee
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
UP3000a
|
3000 l/h
|
2.40m
|
45
|
160.00
|
VDE/CE
|
$77.17
|
|
UP2000a
|
2000 l/h
|
1.60m
|
18
|
177.78
|
VDE/CE
|
$59.23
|
|
UP1000a
|
1000 l/h
|
1.30m
|
10
|
130.00
|
VDE/CE
|
$38.61
|
|
UP500a
|
500 l/h
|
1.20m
|
5
|
120.00
|
VDE/CE
|
$29.31
|
|
UP300a
|
300 l/h
|
0.60m
|
4
|
45.00
|
VDE/CE
|
$23.32
|
Aquaclear Aquatics
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
CAP5000
|
4600 l/h
|
4.00m
|
105
|
175.24
|
|
$129.99
|
|
CAP2200
|
2200 l/h
|
2.40m
|
33
|
160.00
|
|
$49.99
|
|
CAP1800
|
1800 l/h
|
2.10m
|
29
|
130.34
|
|
$39.99
|
|
CAP1200
|
1050 l/h
|
1.50m
|
16
|
98.44
|
|
$34.99
|
|
CAP800
|
800 l/h
|
1.20m
|
14
|
68.57
|
|
$29.99
|
Aquarium Systems/Marineland
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
MP1200
|
1110 l/h
|
1.74m
|
20
|
96.57
|
UL/CSL/CE
|
$42.85
|
|
MP900
|
870 l/h
|
1.17m
|
8.5
|
119.75
|
UL/CSL/CE
|
$38.40
|
|
MP600
|
600 l/h
|
1.35m
|
7.5
|
108
|
UL/CSL/CE
|
$32.85
|
|
MP400
|
400 l/h
|
0.73m
|
5
|
58.4
|
UL/CSL/CE
|
$27.99
|
Azoo
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
2500
|
2500 l/h
|
2.75m
|
38
|
180.92
|
ETL/CE
|
$39.99
|
|
1800
|
1800 l/h
|
2.25m
|
33
|
122.73
|
ETL/CE
|
$29.99
|
|
1200
|
1200 l/h
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
ETL/CE
|
$19.99
|
|
600
|
600 l/h
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
ETL/CE
|
$14.99
|
|
180
|
180 l/h
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
ETL/CE
|
$12.99
|
Eheim
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
1212
|
650 l/h
|
0.43m
|
6
|
46.58
|
UL/CSA/CE/VDE
|
$29.99
|
Hagen
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
901
|
3400 l/h
|
2.00m
|
62
|
109.68
|
UL/CSA1
|
$130.00
|
|
802
|
1514 l/h
|
1.70m
|
20
|
128.69
|
UL/CSA1
|
$63.00
|
|
402
|
990 l/h
|
1.30m
|
12
|
107.25
|
UL/CSA1
|
$51.00
|
|
301
|
660 l/h
|
0.90m
|
8
|
74.25
|
UL/CSA1
|
$40.00
|
|
201
|
480 l/h
|
0.70m
|
6
|
56.00
|
UL/CSA1
|
$33.60
|
JBL
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
Proflow1000a
|
1000 l/h
|
1.48m
|
13.8
|
107.25
|
CE
|
$31.66
|
|
Proflow750a
|
670 l/h
|
1.65m
|
7.5
|
147.40
|
CE
|
$26.44
|
|
Proflow500a
|
490 l/h
|
0.95m
|
6
|
77.58
|
CE
|
$22.59
|
Oscar Enterprises
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
Dive Power 400
|
1500 l/h
|
1.34m
|
24
|
83.75
|
ETL
|
N/A
|
|
Dive Power 200
|
750 l/h
|
.89m
|
5.6
|
119.20
|
ETL
|
N/A
|
|
Dive Power 125
|
475 l/h
|
.64m
|
7.6
|
40.00
|
ETL
|
N/A
|
|
Dive Power 85
|
320 l/h
|
.46m
|
4.6
|
32.00
|
ETL
|
N/A
|
|
Dive Power 40
|
150 l/h
|
.58m
|
3.7
|
23.51
|
ETL
|
N/A
|
Otto
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
PH2000
|
2000 l/h
|
2.60m
|
25
|
208.00
|
N/A
|
$42.32
|
|
PH1200
|
1200 l/h
|
2.10m
|
20
|
126.00
|
N/A
|
$40.58
|
|
PH800
|
800 l/h
|
1.60m
|
8
|
160.00
|
N/A
|
$18.71
|
|
PH600
|
600 l/h
|
1.35m
|
7.4
|
109.46
|
N/A
|
$17.18
|
|
PH400
|
400 l/h
|
1.00m
|
7.2
|
55.56
|
N/A
|
$16.59
|
|
PH200
|
200 l/h
|
0.90m
|
6.5
|
27.69
|
N/A
|
$15.99
|
PennPlax
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
Mako
|
760 l/h
|
N/A
|
8.6
|
N/A
|
UL
|
N/A
|
|
Tiger Shark
|
570 l/h
|
N/A
|
6.7
|
N/A
|
UL
|
N/A
|
Rio
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
3100
|
3420 l/h
|
3.00m
|
78
|
131.54
|
|
$69.99
|
|
2500HP
|
2843 l/h
|
3.00m
|
52
|
164.01
|
UL1
|
$59.99
|
|
2100
|
2630 l/h
|
2.50m
|
39
|
168.59
|
UL1
|
$54.99
|
|
1700
|
2440 l/h
|
2.50m
|
28
|
217.86
|
UL1
|
$49.99
|
|
1400
|
1528 l/h
|
1.80m
|
27
|
101.87
|
|
$39.99
|
|
1100
|
1273 l/h
|
1.80m
|
22
|
104.15
|
|
$34.99
|
|
800HP
|
802 l/h
|
1.50m
|
12
|
100.25
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$27.99
|
|
600
|
760 l/h
|
1.20m
|
9.5
|
96.00
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$24.99
|
|
400
|
547 l/h
|
1.10m
|
6.5
|
92.57
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$21.99
|
|
200
|
524 l/h
|
0.60m
|
6
|
52.40
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$19.99
|
|
180
|
456 l/h
|
0.90m
|
3.5
|
117.26
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$17.99
|
|
90
|
323 l/h
|
0.60m
|
3
|
64.60
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$14.99
|
|
50
|
262 l/h
|
0.30m
|
5
|
15.72
|
UL/CUL/CE2
|
$12.99
|
Selzle
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
P1100a
|
1100 l/h
|
N/A
|
21
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$89.74
|
|
P800a
|
800 l/h
|
N/A
|
10
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$57.33
|
|
P400a
|
400 l/h
|
N/A
|
7.5
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$29.89
|
Tunze
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
3000/2
|
3000 l/h
|
1.50m
|
21
|
204.55
|
VDE
|
$160.65
|
|
1600/2
|
1620 l/h
|
1.30m
|
12
|
175.50
|
VDE
|
$110.45
|
|
1000/2
|
1080 l/h
|
1.20m
|
7
|
185.15
|
VDE
|
$88.70
|
|
600/2a
|
630 l/h
|
1.20m
|
4
|
189.00
|
VDE
|
$66.38
|
ViaAqua
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
VA306
|
2000 l/h
|
1.80m
|
35
|
102.86
|
|
$27.99
|
|
VA305
|
1200 l/h
|
1.50m
|
18
|
100.00
|
|
$19.99
|
|
VA302
|
500 l/h
|
0.60m
|
6
|
50.00
|
|
$14.99
|
|
VA301
|
300 l/h
|
0.30m
|
2.7
|
33.33
|
|
$12.99
|
ZooMed
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
PS228
|
1050 l/h
|
N/A
|
23
|
N/A
|
CSA
|
$54.99
|
|
PS226
|
720 l/h
|
N/A
|
17
|
N/A
|
CSA
|
$43.99
|
|
PS214
|
600 l/h
|
N/A
|
11.5
|
N/A
|
CSA
|
$29.99
|
|
PS212
|
450 l/h
|
N/A
|
9
|
N/A
|
CSA
|
$27.99
|
Submersible Electronic Pumps:
AquaBee
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
UP3000E
|
3000 l/h
|
3.5m
|
28
|
375.00
|
VDE
|
$277.29
|
|
UP2000E
|
2000 l/h
|
2.5m
|
15
|
333.33
|
VDE
|
$245.70
|
Tunze
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
7400/2
|
4000 l/h
|
2.80m
|
44
|
254.55
|
VDE
|
$256.38
|
|
7300/2
|
3000 l/h
|
2.00m
|
22
|
272.73
|
VDE
|
$230.71
|
|
7200/2
|
2400 l/h
|
1.30m
|
13
|
240
|
VDE
|
$200.58
|
Non-Submersible Synchronous Pumps:
Hi Tech
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
Hi Tech
|
2800 l/h
|
N/A
|
15
|
N/A
|
|
$59.99
|
Non-Submersible Asynchronous Pumps:
Fischer
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
TKP3500a
|
3500 l/h
|
N/A
|
46
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$203.22
|
|
TKP2000a
|
2000 l/h
|
N/A
|
46
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$174.81
|
|
TKP1300a
|
1300 l/h
|
N/A
|
36
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$146.12
|
IKS
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
Turbo 3500
|
3500 l/h
|
N/A
|
46
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$235.00
|
|
Turbo 2000
|
2000 l/h
|
N/A
|
46
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
$235.00
|
Tunze
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Max Head
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
4002
|
3700 l/h
|
1.45m
|
42
|
127.73
|
VDE
|
$254.73
|
|
2002
|
2400 l/h
|
1.30m
|
38
|
82.11
|
VDE
|
$216.65
|
Broad Flow Powerheads
The latest trend in the aquarium industry
has been toward broad flow powerheads. These powerheads are
the first such pumps deliberately built for reef aquariums.
They simulate a natural broad flow pattern and are of great
benefit in the maintenance of many corals; SPS corals in particular,
seem to benefit from this broad flow pattern. The reviews
omit head pressure, as this is not really applicable; these
are low-pressure pumps. Efficiency is simply given as maximum
flow divided by watts. The ReefTec pump listed is a do-it-yourself
kit and as such the qualities will vary more as a result of
model of pump chosen and the manner/method of assembly.
Broad Flow Submersible Synchronous Powerheads:
ATK
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
BlackJeta
|
20000 l/h
|
45
|
444.44
|
N/A
|
$837.97
|
|
BlackJeta
|
16000 l/h
|
36
|
444.44
|
N/A
|
$837.97
|
|
BlackJeta
|
12000 l/h
|
33
|
363.64
|
N/A
|
$837.97
|
ReefTec
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
PE-2
|
Approx 7000 l/h
|
DIY
|
DIY
|
DIY
|
Approx $120
|
|
PE-1
|
Approx 5000 l/h
|
DIY
|
DIY
|
DIY
|
Approx $90
|
Tunze
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
6080
|
8500 l/h
|
21
|
404.76
|
VDE
|
$184.77
|
|
6060
|
6000 l/h
|
15
|
400
|
VDE
|
$127.03
|
Broad Flow Submersible Electronic Powerheads:
Tunze
|
Model
|
Max Flow
|
Watts
|
Efficiency
|
Safety Marks
|
MSRP
|
|
6100
|
12000 l/h
|
45
|
266.67
|
VDE
|
$308.27
|
|
6000
|
7000 l/h
|
15
|
466.67
|
VDE
|
$240.70
|
Key to superscripts:
a- 230v 50Hz only- Unless stated wattage is for 115V 60Hz
models
1-Conformity standard product is optional and at extra expense
2-Special low voltage conformity standard product available
at extra expense
|
